Mathematical language can heighten the imagery of a poem; mathematical structure can deepen its effect. Feast here on an international menu of poems made rich by mathematical ingredients . . . . . . . gathered by JoAnne Growney.

Monday, January 10, 2011

Tribute to four teachers

Many people offer advice about education--and, in particular, about mathematics education. I'm skeptical of general pronouncements because my encounters with learning (as student or teacher or parent) have been singular: one mind meeting another mind for a period of exchange. Here's a poem that recalls four of my teachers, three of them teachers of mathematics. The Ones I Best Rememberby JoAnne Growney

Dedicated to Elinor Blair and to the memories of Miriam Ayer, Laura Church, and T. K. Pan

1.

Chalk in hand,she tosses her book, strides across the room, excited by trigonometry,excited that we,restless in our rows,caught some of it.Flamboyant, silver,fearless woman.

2.

The geometer bendstoward the blackboard,drawing quick sketchesthat show how the one-formis the heart of the matter—the foundation for intuitionto build its new ideas.Vigorous, prodding,kindhearted man.

3.

Elegant in long flared skirts when others have shortened theirs—the one who loves Old English,who points to the shadowsof Beowulf and Wordsworth in advertising slogansand late-night TV:each thing is our teacherif we watch and listen.

4.

Nervous in class and tough to follow—she made errors on the blackboard yet demanded we write perfect mathematics in perfect English sentences. This was notan East Coast finishing school, and I hopedshe’d be lenient with the Asian studentseven as fear made me work infinitely hard on papers that she gave back bright with red-ink from her difficult hand. No one before or since has read my wordsso carefully.

Two of these teachers taught at Indiana Joint High School (Indiana, PA) during my time there in the late 1950s and two were graduate school professors at the University of Oklahoma in the late 1960s.

Contact JoAnne Growney: wow(at)joannegrowney(dot)com.

JoAnne Growney is available for presentations -- readings, workshops, interactive lectures -- and collaborations. For information about her collaborative activities (art-poetry, math-poetry, translation), publications, and so on -- visit http://joannegrowney.com/.